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Dakahr Clutch
"Knowledge is power, Kalarisis, and that power is ours." - Makisa Vai Dakahr The Dakahr Clutch of gargoyles was one of the first clutches to come into being following the fall of the Grey Elves. Smaller and more reclusive than the other clutches, they settled in locales deep underground - often surviving, in the deep darkness, in locations the other gargoyle clutches would have considered inhospitable. Rather uniquely, the Dakahr clutch is one of the few clutches to have adapted to a watery environment - many Dakahr cities were established deep within underground aquifers, the only places water could be found within the scorching sands of the Augustgradian Desert. The Dakahr were brilliant and skillful, and served as spies and assassins, the clutch called upon when something needed to be eliminated. As a side-effect of their nature, however, the Dakahr were infamous blackmailers and thieves, distrusted by many. A good deal of this has to do with their involvement during the Clutch Wars. Whilst many Gargoyles claim to have been blessed by the elemental spirits of earth, the Dakahr clearly have a stronger affinity with water. Dakahr gargoyles are both slimmer and more streamlined-looking than their counterparts. They tend to have fine, elven features of exquisite beauty, with skin tones varying between purples, blacks, and blues. Hair colors are often quite light, with white and blonde shades being the most common, but a smattering of other shades being seen. Dakahr gargoyles have tails with fluted crests, well-suited to swimming, and are adapted to a watery environment - many of their clutch can breathe underwater. Dakahr Gargoyles often have multiple swept-back horns, giving them the appearance of having a crown when viewed from the front. Rune-marks are invariably purple in shade. Information 'Clutch Name Meaning: '''Of the Lightless Depths '''Regalia Colors: '''Black and Blue; Rune-marks are purple '''Broodqueen: '''Makisa vai Asoraius '''Focus: '''Spying, information-gathering, assassination '''Symbol: '''A lapis scarab. The Dakahr are known for their observational abilities and nonlinear thinking. This manifests as a deep affinity for both research and espionage. Even the most laid back of the Dakahr is studious and observant, constantly running over ideas in their head and pondering backup plans. The assassins and spies of gargoyle society, the Dakahr teach that all beings harbor weaknesses - whether a personal moral failing or a legitimate vulnerability on some other level - and that finding out that weakness gives one power. In harnessing the power of such secrets, any creature can be destroyed - irregardless of its actual power. A side-effect of Dakahr doctrine is that it also codifies a concept of a secret flaw or imperfection within any being - no matter how powerful or virtuous - and that this can and should be exploited by those who can identify it. Members of more ordered or martial clutches, like the Asoraius Clutch or Borkhoi Clutch have criticized this belief by saying that it implies that any creature could harbor a secret evil, but the Solahn Clutch have defended it by arguing that it also means that evil creatures may still possess a fragment of decency. The Borkhoi are fond of saying that a Dakahr Gargoyle will ''never reveal all that they know. Culture The Dakahr are fearlessly inventive among the clutches, and were among the few to not fear new technology or ideas. Of all the clutches, the Dakahr were the first to employ the methods used by other races - the Naga, the Humans, the Beastmen - and began to adapt them to their own ends, becoming adept at sorcery, developing new weapons, and even employing limited use of gunpowder - preferring to put stock in their own intuition and initiative rather than tradition, an attitude that would put them at odds with the Galar. A Dakahr will never use brute force when surreptitious influence could accomplish the same result with more grace. The Dakahr have always had a good relationship with the Orisis clutch. The Dakahr see information-gathering and even open spying as a matter of course when dealing with both other races and other clutches. This is not done in an underhanded fashion, but simply to keep a constant flow of information and intelligence, which is further backed by the Dakahrian skill at divination magic. Other clutches during the clutch wars were constantly uncovering Dakahr agents and incursions, and in practice, found them borderline impossible to stop. The Dakahr often see non-Gargoyle races as hopelessly naive, dealing with intricacies of espionage with clumsy, unfamiliar responses as their clutch has been skilled at it for over a thousand years. The Dakahr were not above using blackmail to achieve their goals, earning significant ire from their enemies. According to Kalarisis, deeply-held secrets of the various Broodqueens were common knowledge to the Dakahr. As is the case for most clutches, Dakahr society is Matriarchal, with their Broodqueens cloistered in their mother clutch out of tradition and respect. The Broodqueen herself and powerful female nobles of the Dakahr are political kingpins; they determine the political courses of their clutches through shrewd negotiation and coersion, if necessary. Male Dakahr often instead rise to positions of authority in business, academia, or in the Dakahr's limited military, relatively rarely having any notable impact on clutch politics. The Dakahr are notably impious, and do not prescribe to the traditional forms of ancestor reverence common to the other clutches. This change, brought about by the Dakahr clutch's studious nature and embracing of new ideas, was the source for some of the worst conflicts during the Clutch Wars as the Galar and Dakahr went to war. Only the timely intervention of the Borkhoi and Solahn prevented the conflict from worsening before the Asoraius could negotiate a peace settlement. To hear the Dakahr tell it, they acknowledge the existence of powerful entities like fiends and powerful elemental spirits, but not their divinity; In the eyes of the Dakahr, these entities are powerful, but ultimately not worthy of worship. When it comes to keeping secrets, Dakahr Gargoyles have two types of social cues. The first type is personal or guilt-based, and invites suspicion and exploration. The second type is for secrets deemed dangerous if discovered, and signals discourage curiosity for protection of the relevant parties. Reflexive body language conveys the type of secret and, as a rule, these cannot be faked convincingly; an analogue is that of a human faking a sneeze. It is very rare that non-Dakahr can pick up on these clues; as of so far, only Omorose and Rashida are known to be able to do so. The superiority of the Dakahr's skill at subterfuge and espionage allowed them to use their rather small military to maximum effectiveness. Well before fighting broke out, the Dakahr tended to possess complete knowledge of their enemy's positions, intentions, and resources. Dakahr field operatives were willing to "do what's necessary," without the shackles of traditional laws or morality. This can be as simple as quietly mitigating the effects of an ongoing disaster, or as direct as assassinating another clutch's noble to ensure a conveniently unstable political situation stayed that way. In every conflict the Dakahr have ever fought, they have struck first, and never with any warning. The Dakahr find Asoraius concepts of striking only when attacked first hopelessly naive. History The Dakahr have always been one of the smaller clutches, emerging as the loremasters and scholars of the clutches - only the Isera and Sethys were as studious with research into the nature of magic and the history of the Gargoyles' Grey Elven forebears. They originally settled around the oases of the Hesh Plains, where they established small villages with elaborate and expansive networks of tunnels underneath them. Whilst a Dakahr settlement might resemble a simple marketplace from afar, underneath the streets one would find expansive caverns and structures, where the Dakahr could carry out their business in relative privacy. Being one of the least-numerous clutches, the Dakahr seldom involved themselves in affairs unbidden, Though they could be counted upon by the other clutches in time of danger. Being smaller, the Dakahr found ways to deal with their enemies that were anything but direct. They poured enormous resources into researching new kinds of magic, and eventually left behind the shamanistic magic of the other clutches, instead embracing powerful (and destructive) sorcery. Unable to fight foes directly, the Dakahr embraced the odious practice of using assassination and subversion to win the day against their enemies. Between this embrace of shadier tactics on the battlefield, and their abandonment of long-standing Gargoyle traditions, the Dakahr wound up running afoul of the traditionalist Galar clutch, and the two inevitably wound up fighting. At one point, the Galar Broodqueen at the time declared that the Dakahrian embrace of sorcery and willingness to engage in assassination would spell the doom of the Gargoyle race, citing the fall of the Grey Elves as an example. The response by the Dakahr was to attack and take over the Galar mother clutch, which inevitably led to a protracted conflict in the middle of what would be known as the Clutch Wars. The Galar eventually forced the Dakahr out, and, with aid from the Gurahk, drove them from the region entirely. It was only intervention by the Asoraius that stopped the war from intensifying - the Dakahr, embittered by the conflict and the slow response of the other clutches to their plight, nursed their resentment and retreated to lands the other clutches found inhospitable, carving deep tunnels into the cliffs around the Black Desert, and establishing themselves far away from prying eyes. With no need to concern themselves with the affairs of the other clutches, the Dakahr established massive underground cities in their new homes, and only emerged rarely to interact with the few clutches that would treat with them - the Rakavuu, and the Orisis. Having turned introverted, the bulk of the other clutches met with the Dakahr only at Broodmeets or when they discovered Dakahr spies somewhere in their midst. Centuries later, the rise of the Rakshasa caused the Dakahr to become unlikely heroes in the conflict to come. The Borkhoi, under Rashida vai Borkhoi, sought out the Dakahr, and, against all advice from other clutches, enlisted their help in the fight against their old foes, relying upon their skills to win the day against the vastly-more-numerous and well-equipped legions of soldiers and slaves fielded by the Rakshasa. The Dakahr became critical to Borkhoi operations - fast-moving and stealthy, with powerful magic, they formed the perfect hammer to the Borkhoi's anvil. The relationship of the Borkhoi with the Dakahr is what would ultimately lead the Asoraius, now under Kalarisis vai Asoraius, to attempt to reunite the disparate clutches in the hopes of winning the Great Desert War. The loss of Kalarisis crushed the hopes most had of unification. The Asor turned upon the Galar for allowing the likes of Phaia to corrupt and exploit their teachings, and the Gurahk overthrew their Broodqueen, becoming a roving band of marauders and brigands. Makisa vai Dakahr, realizing that the Gargoyles had lost the war entirely, attempted to encourage the other clutches to abandon the desert and seek shelter elsewhere, but few listened - and in the end, only the Orisis heeded the warnings. Makisa attempted to save the Borkhoi using her sorcery - and succeeded - but at a terrible price, and much of Rashida's army was routed, the Borkhoi Broodqueen taken by the Gurahk as a trophy. After overseeing the exodus from the desert, Makisa, shamed by her failings, all-but-dismissed most of her clutch, and retired to a self-imposed exile in an undersea ruin far south of Daramir. She spent centuries in this ruin, rarely venturing out except for food and to periodically treat with Omorose. She would eventually emerge only at Kalarisis' request, and she returned, with a small contingent of Dakahr survivors, to aid the Asoraius Queen once more.